Larry King Is Signing Off

Larry King Is Signing Off

After 25 (125?) years on CNN, ‘Larry King Live’ will end its run.

-Kathryn H. Cusimano

Well, it looks like the time has come for Larry King to retire. Larry King Live will end its 25-year run on CNN this fall. King opened his show with this announcement last night:

“Before I start the show tonight, I want to share some personal news with you. 25 years ago, I sat across this table from New York Governor Mario Cuomo for the first broadcast of Larry King Live. Now, decades later, I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end Larry King Live, the nightly show, this fall and CNN has graciously accepted, giving me more time for my wife and I to get to the kids’ little league games.

I’m incredibly proud that we recently made the Guinness Book of World Records for having the longest running show with the same host in the same time slot. With this chapter closing I’m looking forward to the future and what my next chapter will bring, but for now it’s time to hang up my nightly suspenders.”

King will continue to host some specials on CNN. Though his show’s ratings have declined over the last few years, King has remained a behemoth in television news. Unfortunately, lately his very public marriage troubles stole the spotlight from his show. Yet King has had a great run, with two Peabody Awards and one Emmy under his belt. Piers Morgan, Ryan Seacrest and Katie Couric have all been mentioned as possible replacements for King.